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Air Force One

Ha! This is an extremely unoriginal action film : foreign terrorists take a plane hostage. Hello “Delta Force”, “Passenger 57″, “Executive Decision”… And anyway, these are all reminders of the classic “Die Hard”. The only difference is that the hero this time is the President. Yeah, right! I haven’t seen any plot that unbelievable in a long time. I mean, the President is just an administrator! I doubt that he could pull a Schwarzenegger, or even a Seagal! Still, the action is enjoyable. There’s enjoyment to be had out of all these shoot-outs, fights, explosions and attitude. Wolfgang Petersen’s direction is effective enough, even though he did a better job on “In the Line of Fire”, one of the finest thrillers ever made.

As for the performances, I’m kinda tired of Harrison Ford. I mean, I loved him as Han Solo, and his turn as Indiana Jones is mesmerizing, but these days, he’s too much of an old stiff. His presidential portrayal is far from good ole Bill Clinton. He’s way too serious. Unbelievable action is better digested when it doesn’t take itself too seriously; ask Ah-nuld. The most interesting thing in the film is probably Gary Oldman, always impeccable. He’s a strong villain, and he’s the only convincing presence in the picture. Still, I was always entertained, if not thrilled. It’s like, I had seen every twist and turn a thousand time, but the whole enterprise is mostly well oiled, so I had a good time.